Professional English

Cambridge English for

Scientists
Additional activities
UNIT 1 A project summary
1 a A team of researchers have written a project summary for a grant proposal to
the National Science Foundation of the United States. Ignoring the words in bold,
read the first sentence of each of the five paragraphs from the project summary
(a–e). Then in pairs, say what you think the best order is:
1     2     3     4     5 
a Both teams for this project already have knowledge in various features of the
problems described.
b However there are very few outcomes and the methods that were developed have
broken down.
c The need for mathematical analysis of shell models is in response to a variety of
technological demands, which call for more complex models.
d This project will focus on stabilization and optimal control, particularly with
boundary controls, of systems concerning dynamical shells.
e We propose to carry out collaborative research between the French National
Institute of Computer Science Research and the University of Ottawa in the general
area of control theory for models illustrated by partial differential equations
(PDEs).

b Ignoring the words in bold, check your answers to Exercise 1a by matching a

sentence (a–e) to the correct paragraph (1–5) of the full project summary.

NSF Grant Proposal for Stabilization and

Optimal Control of Dynamic Shell Models
[1] . We intend to investigate problems related to stabilisation and
optimal control of dynamic shell models where control actions and sensing
are put into place via smart materials technology.

[2] . The principle model considered in this proposal is a three-

dimensional structural acoustic interaction with curved walls, which
is modeled by shell equations. This model occurs in the context of
decreasing noise or pressure entering an acoustic chamber (e.g. airplane’s
cabin) and generated by an exterior source.

[3] . Thus mathematical investigation related to control problems of

shell equations is challenging from a mathematical point of view and calls
for the introduction of new tools and new techniques for the analysis and
computations connected to the problem.

[4] . Two approaches will be considered. First, piezoelectric

shell’s modeling tracked by past researchers and a second centre on
piezoelectric patches attached to the curved wall. These approaches will
result in two different control models. Rigorous mathematical analysis
of the problem, including comparative analysis, followed by numerical
computations and experimental verification of the models will represent
the essential part of the project.

[5] . Thus we wish to combine the teams’ expertise to generate

results leading to progress in the field.

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 UNIT 1 A project summary

c Read the completed project summary. Then in pairs, decide if the following
statements are true (T) or false (F).
1 The summary includes information on what research will be done and who will
do it.
2 The summary does not mention any possible commercial applications of the
research.
3 Members of the team have worked on projects in similar areas in the past.

2 a The table below includes useful verbs and nouns you can use in your own project
summary. Match a word in bold from the texts in Exercises 1a and b to a word
with a similar meaning in the left-hand columns of the tables.

Verbs
describe
fail
focus on
implement
lead to result in (will result in)
plan to
produce generate
require

Nouns
answer response
aspect
research investigation
result
technique

b The adjectives in the first column are taken from the project summary. Complete
the second and third columns in the table below as in the example.

Adjective Noun(s) Verb

collaborative collaboration collaborate
collaborator
comparative
complex
different
various

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 Professional English
Cambridge English for

Scientists
Additional activities
UNIT 1
Before you begin …
Teacher’s Notes
Ask students what information a good project summary for a grant or award
application should include (the aims of the research, why the research is
necessary, what the expected results will be). You could also ask them to say:
l who the reader(s) will be (representatives of the organisation which is making the
award)
l what the purpose of the summary is (to persuade the organisation that the
research will be valuable)

Note
This proposal is for research in control theory. This is a branch of maths and
materials sciences which is interested in creating mathematical models to
describe the behaviour of dynamical systems (the movement of a pendulum
is an example of a dynamical system). The following link offers a basic
description: http://mathworld.wolfram.com/ControlTheory.html
The proposal is for an award from the National Science Foundation of the
United States government (http://www.nsf.gov/).

1 a Students read the five sentences and work in pairs to decide on the best order
of the paragraphs they belong to. Tell students that there may be more than one
possible correct answer so they should be prepared to justify their answers. You
could also mention that the words in bold are connected to Exercise 2, which they
will do later.

b Students check whether their answer(s) to Exercise 1b fit the main part of
the project summary. Remind students that the answers are correct for this
team’s project summary and that any alternative order for the paragraphs they
suggested for Exercise 1a may also be suitable.

Answers
1 e   2 c   3 b   4 d   5 a

c Students read the completed summary before answering the questions.

Answers
1 T
2 F – the 2nd paragraph refers to various technological demands and gives an
example of airplane cabins
3 T

2 a Tell students that they will now look at some of the language used in the project
summary. They should use the infinitive form of the verb to complete the first
table but ask them to make a note of the form of the verb used in the text, as
in the examples. In the second table, plural forms of the nouns they need may
appear in the summary.

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 UNIT 1 Teacher’s Notes

Answers
Verbs
describe illustrate (illustrated by)
fail break down (have broken down)
focus on consider (considered)
implement put into place
lead to result in (will result in)
plan to intend to
produce generate
require call for (calls for)

Nouns
aspect feature (features)
research investigation
result outcome (outcomes)
technique method (methods)

b Tell students that many of the words used in scientific writing in English belong
to word ‘families’. That is, the root or stem of the word (e.g. collabor-) can be
adapted to different parts of speech (adjective, noun, verb). These kinds of words
are very common in research papers and they should make an effort to practice
word-building. You could also mention that they will do work on prefixes and
suffixes throughout the Cambridge English for Scientists course.

Answers
Adjective Noun(s) Verb

collaborative collaboration collaborate

collaborator
comparative comparison compare
complex complexity complicate
complication
different difference differ
various variety vary
variation

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